WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD: Quietly, and below the media radar, some 20 top corporate bosses and lobbyists of two of the world’s largest gold mining groups have been meeting President Asif Zardari, Prime Minister Gilani, Governor State Bank and others in Islamabad throughout last week, pressing them to quickly hand over one of the world’s biggest gold and copper treasures found in Balochistan at Reko Diq, worth over $260 billion, to their companies, and for peanuts.
Before these highly enticing visits of the mining tycoons to clinch the deals, which followed intense behind-the-scene negotiations and bargaining through middle men, some highly bizarre developments have been taking place, leaving experts and the rest of the mining world stunned, amazed and confused.
These companies want that the mining licences should be issued by Pakistan immediately after their exploration licences expire soon. But there are legal hitches and pressure is now being put through the backdoor to get the target.
In recent years, so many games have been played to keep Pakistan’s share in the enormous treasure to a bare minimum, thanks to some greedy politicians and bureaucrats who sold their country’s natural wealth.
For More Read Here
So finally Pakistan has got the biggest gold mine ever in history :jhanda:
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
I read this yesterday and could not believe it.
Can someone confirm that we do have mine worth $260 Billion? Discovery of such mine can not be this quiet (I am not talking about the deal but discovery). I dont remember reading the news of such mine discovery.
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
I read this yesterday and could not believe it.
Can someone confirm that we do have mine worth $260 Billion? Discovery of such mine can not be this quiet (I am not talking about the deal but discovery). I dont remember reading the news of such mine discovery.
Few days i received a msged regarding this discovery of gold mine i thought its fake
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
sannu ki tee tuwanuu kii:chupki: if its real I am guessing the amount of 10% 260 USD in BILLIONS. and for the shares of others!! hhmmm guess wheos others
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
Another example of what happens in a banana republic. Democracy does not only mean people voting to elect governments, but strong institutions and transparent systems which can safeguard people’s interests.
Tarnished gold
Despite our poverty we sit on untold riches. A report in this newspaper has revealed that in Balochistan there are vast deposits of gold and copper – in geological terms an extension of the seams that are soon to be exploited in Afghanistan. Such is the scale of these deposits that their extraction and sale could dramatically alter our economy – for the better – for decades to come. We might have expected to have heard from this government – and its predecessor for it was on their watch that the full scale of the deposits was realised – as to the good news that would shortly be announced. But have we heard of our bonanza being trumpeted? Most certainly not, at least not beyond a few sketchy and confused reports in the media over the years. Today we know why. This government, quietly picking up where the Musharraf regime left off, has been cooking a set of deals with foreign mining companies that look set to benefit them beyond the dreams of avarice and benefit those in the government who are brokering the deal.
They are in on this at the very top. President Zardari, Prime Minister Gilani and the governor of the State Bank all have their fingers in the pie. At one level this is right and proper – resources such as this require attention from the very top. Yet at another level the business is being conducted with such a lack of transparency, indeed perhaps deliberate obfuscation in order to throw an inquisitive and sharp-nosed media off the scent, that there is an overpowering stink of corruption leaking from the seams of the nascent deal. Currently, the foreign mining companies are working under exploration licences, used to determine the viability of the deposits in terms of extraction and profit. They now want these turning – and quickly – into mining licences, which are a different kettle of fish entirely. Such is the irregularity, even within the murky world of the global mining industry, that a New York corporate executive in the mining industry is of the opinion that everything should be put on hold before any binding contracts and deals are signed and the whole matter placed before the Supreme Court for investigation. This would seem the appropriate course of action. Billions of dollars are at stake, a national asset appears being traded down for peanuts, there is no process of accountability and millions have probably already disappeared into the accounts of the various players
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
Another example of what happens in a banana republic. Democracy does not only mean people voting to elect governments, but strong institutions and transparent systems which can safeguard people’s interests.
Tarnished gold
Despite our poverty we sit on untold riches. A report in this newspaper has revealed that in Balochistan there are vast deposits of gold and copper – in geological terms an extension of the seams that are soon to be exploited in Afghanistan. Such is the scale of these deposits that their extraction and sale could dramatically alter our economy – for the better – for decades to come. We might have expected to have heard from this government – and its predecessor for it was on their watch that the full scale of the deposits was realised – as to the good news that would shortly be announced. But have we heard of our bonanza being trumpeted? Most certainly not, at least not beyond a few sketchy and confused reports in the media over the years. Today we know why. This government, quietly picking up where the Musharraf regime left off, has been cooking a set of deals with foreign mining companies that look set to benefit them beyond the dreams of avarice and benefit those in the government who are brokering the deal.
They are in on this at the very top. President Zardari, Prime Minister Gilani and the governor of the State Bank all have their fingers in the pie. At one level this is right and proper – resources such as this require attention from the very top. Yet at another level the business is being conducted with such a lack of transparency, indeed perhaps deliberate obfuscation in order to throw an inquisitive and sharp-nosed media off the scent, that there is an overpowering stink of corruption leaking from the seams of the nascent deal. Currently, the foreign mining companies are working under exploration licences, used to determine the viability of the deposits in terms of extraction and profit. They now want these turning – and quickly – into mining licences, which are a different kettle of fish entirely. Such is the irregularity, even within the murky world of the global mining industry, that a New York corporate executive in the mining industry is of the opinion that everything should be put on hold before any binding contracts and deals are signed and the whole matter placed before the Supreme Court for investigation. This would seem the appropriate course of action. Billions of dollars are at stake, a national asset appears being traded down for peanuts, there is no process of accountability and millions have probably already disappeared into the accounts of the various players
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
nothing new here... almost 3 years ago there were news about it and that time Hazrat Musharraf Tablanawaz was the one who sold it out, the deal was subject for annual renewal, which i think i read that time it went on for 2-3 years and then this govt did not extend the contract. and now this news coming to surface means they were trying to get their share only, cancellation of the deal was not due to the lose country had to bear...
you cannot expect any good from these thieves, why cannot someone file a case again in SC, if nothing else, it will at least halt the proceedings for sometime and bring the case in front of public. who knows they may end up canceling this just like steel mill
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
Barrick Gold is a big group in Australia, there's no problem if the licenses are awarded properly without any kickbacks...it would be better if Pakistan could have mined it itself but thats too much to ask...
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
Looks like deal was done in Mush's era, who was responsible for all this corruption and mess. Surprisingly this news paper was silent in those days when these shady dealings were made. I don't know what are ulterior motives that this band is playing now?
All this was done during the Musharraf regime and bureaucrats played havoc with Pakistani interests.
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
So , not to pop your bubble , the total price of this find is 22 billion dollars at todays prices not 240 billion dollars as claimed in the news report. ghalti say aik sifer ziada lag gia.
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
So , not to pop your bubble , the total price of this find is 22 billion dollars at todays prices not 240 billion dollars as claimed in the news report. ghalti say aik sifer ziada lag gia.
Mirch bhai kia ho gaya? aap ka apnay link ke mutabiq:
[QUOTE]
Estimated payable metal production over a 56-year mine life is 22 billion pounds of copper and 13 million ounces of gold. Annual output is estimated at 270,000 ounces of gold and 400 million to 426 million pounds of copper in the first five years.
Pakistan's federal government has estimated Reko Diq mineral exports could be worth $500 billion.
[/QUOTE]
You are probably confusing 22 billion pounds of copper with 22 billion dollars :D, gold alone by today's price is $16.9 billion while copper is $550 billion.
and gold is about 1399 dollars per ounce is 1382 dollars per ounce so price of gold dig would be 12 billion dollars http://www.goldprice.org/
so total comes to 56 billion dollars.
I am skeptical because Pakistani people have been shown many sabz baaghs (green gardens) many a times , like once Z. A Bhutto showed in Pakistan assembly a bottle full of oil and promised that we will be rich soon , But we are still poor nation.
Re: $260 billion gold mines going for a song, behind closed doors
Just because its from “reuters” we shouldn’t cut down the estimates of metals, from your earlier links ‘mineweb.com’ is ‘latest’ from the two so I’ll take that to be better estimate.
You are right, I looked at wrong graph to estimate Copper price, from 22 billion pounds we could get $85 billion plus $18 billion from gold= $100+ billion.
